Controversial Olympic rule forces Olympic favorite out of all-around

This blog post is probably overdue since what I am about to vent about happened last night U.S. time and even earlier London time, but I did not have time to write it at midnight last night.

For those of us that have been avoiding Twitter with tweets regarding the Olympics and any kind of Olympic news online at all costs so that we can experience the races, scores and relays without knowing the winner this blog post is for you! For those that check the Olympic news before actually watching the event, well, this post in the online world is about a day and a half overdue.

One of my favorite sports to watch during the Olympic games is definitely women’s gymnastics. It may be because of their amazing power, strength and agility that they make appear so graceful or because whenever I think of the greatest Olympic moments the majority that come to mind are gymnastics. (Of course I’m being biased, but there are a lot of them!)

It also may be because we always crush every other country in this sport and this year is no different. The United States has by far the greatest gymnastics talent in the world, but unfortunately due to a rule configured in 2003 by the Federation Internacional de Gymastique only two athletes from each country are allowed to advance to the all-around. This rule makes no sense to me, but it has been in place for years even before the current U.S. women’s Olympic team were competing. However, this year, like many years before, the top 24 gymnasts in the world will not be competing because they were beaten out by their own teammates.

If you were actually watching the U.S. women’s gymnastic team last night, and not just following the updates on Twitter, it was absolutely heartbreaking to watch. As the arena erupted in cheers for Aly Raisman, fellow U.S. teammate, Jordyn Wieber broke down into sobs covering her face as a role model, best friend, roommate and fellow teammate crushed her Olympic dream. Reining world champion and Olympic favorite, Jordyn Wieber lost her opportunity at the women’s all-around final, one of the showcase events at the Olympics. Instead, she will compete in the team finals on Tuesday.

Jordyn Wieber is arguably THE best gymnast in the world and I think last night she was judged with extremely harsh standards. Of course, I will not argue that I know gymnastics better than an Olympic judge, but I will argue that I think too many points were deducted. Yes, Weiber had slip ups last night but not so drastic that should have cost her the all-around. She killed the vault, wobbled slightly on the beam, did decent on the uneven bars, (keep in mind that IS her worst event so although decent is definitely not a word to be used for the Olympics, I think it can be used in this case) and barely stepped out of bounds on her floor exercise. These are ALL of the mistakes that cost her that all-around spot, but I think far too many points were deducted for such minor mistakes.

I think it is a huge disappointment not only for Weiber, but also the U.S. and the world to not have the opportunity to watch such an amazing athlete and gymnast compete in the all-around.

Of course, don’t’ get me wrong; I am extremely excited to watch Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman compete. I am just disappointed that I will not be able to watch all three amazing gymnasts in the all-around.

Although I may vent because I won’t get to watch my favorite U.S. gymnast compete for the all-around title, I do not mean to be disrespectful in any way to the Olympics or the opposing Olympic gymnasts. Some people may be wondering the reason for the rule and I think Baron Pierre de Coubertin’s Olympic creed sums it up perfectly. It reads as follows:

“The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.”

9 lessons the brutal job hunt has taught me

1.     There are A LOT of intelligent and talented people out there and there is always one that is better than the next. There will always be that person who has a better website, more Twitter followers, a more interesting blog or hundreds more blog followers than you. Of course, it would be great to have the best website, thousands of blog and Twitter followers with really awesome content, but pick one and excel at it. That doesn’t mean not to ONLY have one of those, but pick the one your best at and become even better. It demonstrates initiative and shows off your talent. It’s stiff competition and no one has room to just be ordinary anymore.

2.     How to avoid putting too much pressure on yourself. I put a lot of pressure on myself daily to continuously network, stay up to date on current events especially in PR, read endless amounts of blogs and follow certain influential people on Twitter, but it’s difficult! There are so many great blogs out there and thousands of influential people on Twitter, however; narrow that down to the field you want to delve into and that online sphere will become a lot smaller. Try not to solely follow these people, try and interact with them! Create intelligent Twitter content and interact with as many professionals in that field as possible. Never before have we had the opportunity to send a personal tweet to the CEO of (insert dream company here). We need to take advantage of that!

3.     How to deal with frustration and stress. Well, for starters relaxing and re-evaluating my current situation is what has helped me the most. I have great networking weeks and weeks that have gone by where I haven’t heard from anyone, which becomes extremely frustrating. Being able to critique yourself and evaluate what you’re doing wrong or what you should be doing is a huge step to accomplishing your goals. Running, for me, is another huge stress reliever and thank god it’s a healthy one! Running allows me to cope with my stress in a healthy way that gives me the opportunity to assess what my goals are and what I’m doing on a daily basis to get where I want to be.

4.     Stepping away from the computer and taking some time to yourself. This one is HUGE! You can only sit at the computer for so long and apply to endless jobs throughout the day. A lot of the job search is waiting for other people to respond and for your networking abilities to pay off and land you that informational interview you’ve been working so hard for. Sitting at the computer all day waiting for a response will drive anyone up the wall, so step away. Set up segments of your day to devote to job searching, networking and researching and then step away for a few hours. It won’t kill you and everything will be right back where you left it, but this time hopefully with the response you’ve been waiting for! 

5.     The world is changing and so is the job search strategy. It’s people like this we are up against in today's job market. Can you imagine what it will be like in 10 years? I mean honestly, can you?

6.     An online presence today is a must. I’m sure if you’re reading this post then I’m just preaching to the choir, but a personal website, Twitter, LinkedIn and blog are now becoming the norm. And not only are they necessities to have, but it’s imperative to actually understand how to use them and use them effectively.

7.     People are more willing to help than you may think ESPECIALLY in PR and ESPECIALLY in your alumni network. I have reached out to countless Penn State alumni to set up informational interviews just to chat and hear about their transitions from students into their first PR jobs. Every time I reach out I have gotten a response in return. Everyone is busy, but everyone remembers what it was like to be in our position. Penn Staters are willing to help out other Penn Staters especially now more than ever. We are smart, driven and aspiring young professionals that just want to find our way. And what better way to do that than the advice and guidance of successful former alumni. So just reach out because you would be surprised at how helpful people truly are.

8.     Use hashtags and blogs like #HAPPO to help with the job search. Think about it, #HAPPO was created specifically for people like us, so take advantage of the tools that are out there because there are a lot more than you may actually think.

9.     Do something meaningful with the extra time on your hands because you probably won’t have it again for a VERY long time. Take an online class and continue learning and advancing your knowledge. It will show that you’re not just wasting your time and waiting for things to fall into your lap. Do some freelance work for local start-ups or small business’, start a blog, create a website, volunteer and get involved. It doesn’t really matter what you do, but make sure you are doing something. Once you land that interview you can show that employer the initiative and extra steps you took during your job search that someone else probably did not take.

It gets frustrating at times, but the connections I made from putting myself out there and speaking with people I would have normally never met are priceless. My opportunity will surface soon I can just feel it! To be honest, if I had started a job directly out of college I don’t think I would have appreciated it as much as I do now. I don’t just look for a job, I look for a career with a company or organization that I can grow and learn with everyday.

We are STILL Penn State

Working the PSU football game in September

 After the Penn State sanctions given by the NCAA were announced at 9:01 a.m. on Monday July, 23 the top 6 trending topics were #PSU, #PennState, #NCAA, #NCAASanctions, #PSUFootball and #Emmert. The social media world went crazy with news organizations spreading the Penn State sanctions like wildfire and daily Twitter users revealing their opinions holding nothing back.

On Monday July, 23 the NCAA had to make a firm stance that sexual abuse would not be tolerated. And boy did they make the world know it. Let's talk about power and the abuse it has wrought on our university. The power of a few men and their ability to hide one of the worst crimes in college football history. Well, President Emmert of the NCAA showed off the amount of power he holds over NCAA college football programs Monday morning. He made an example out of Penn State causing the country, for the first time since the PSU scandal broke, to empathize with the Penn State community.

However, my problem with the NCAA and Mr. Emmert is their lack of involvement in the college "football culture" prior to Monday July, 23. I have one question for you Mr. Emmert, did you know that Michigan covered up a rape scandal in 2010, Iowa football players were raping girls in 2011 and Baylor covered up a MURDER in 2003? Where were you then NCAA? Of course these are absolutely awful crimes and I would never try to lessen the crimes committed by Sandusky, but my point is the NCAA did not step in during any of those times. Instead, they made an example out of Penn State and not only hurt the current administration that now has to deal with the crippling remains, but they hurt every student athlete at Penn State University.

Let me make myself clear that it's not that Penn State fans think football is more important than the victims, (because that would be absurd) but it is the fact that the two of them are not and should not be related. We can support the victims (as we have by raising over $500,000 for RAINN) AND the support the current PSU football team because those players worked hard to be where they are today and those players had absolutely nothing to do with what one man did over a decade ago.

As Mike Mauti stated in a press conference yesterday afternoon, "This program was not built by one man and it sure as hell won't be torn down by one man." No matter where I am on September 1, 2012 I plan to support the Penn State football players. I support them because they have had to deal with the media hounding them daily since November 2011, they have dealt with opposing football coaches preying outside of the Lasch Building waiting like vultures to pounce, they have faced the loss of a football coach and mentor and they have STILL pledged to stay at Penn State. 

But what makes Penn State STILL Penn State is the fact that although these players have gone through the worst of it they have not only pledged to stay at Penn State and play, but they do not see this as a disadvantage. The Penn State football team and Head Football Coach Bill O'Brien see this as an opportunity to succeed and show the country that we STILL are Penn State.

The preparation that goes into a food truck

For those who may not know last year my brother moved down to North Carolina from New York City to begin fulfilling his dream of opening of a gourmet grilled cheese food truck called American Meltdown. Food trucks are beginning to pop up across the United States serving customers where restaurant locations are lacking and people are in need of more diverse food choices. For example, not many people that attend summer concerts eat inside the concert venue myself included. Attendees are either eating the food they tailgated with or making sure to eat before the concert start because who wants to pay 10 dollars for chicken fingers that are probably older than you and I? For the first time this year, Live Nation Entertainment is allowing food trucks inside the Time Warner Music Pavilion in an effort to boost sales by allowing attendees the option to choose genuinely great tasting food. From gourmet melts to freshly made sausages and sandwiches, Time Warner Music Pavilion finally has food options to choose from other than microwavable burgers and hot dogs. 

Since graduating from Penn State and using the summer to job search, I have been helping my brother out as much as possible taking orders on the truck, preparing sandwiches, cleaning, social networking and even preparing the food! Thanks to the Durham cookery, located at 1101 West Chapel Hill Street in Durham, NC, local entrepreneurs launching a culinary business have the opportunity to rent out the kitchen containing top of the line equipment, cooking and cleaning stations, food truck parking and food storage units.  Local food talent like American Meltdown is brought together in the heart of Durham serving the community one gourmet melt at a time!

Today I had the opportunity to help out food truck owner and my awesome brother Paul Inserra in the kitchen for the first time. Although there are many pros to opening up a food truck, the food prep, cleaning, transportation, transporting of foods, generator,  arranging and rearranging of equipment is a lot more work than meets they customers eye. 


What are the pros you ask? It is a lot cheaper than opening up a restaurant due to the start-up costs. The labor costs are also cheaper and you have the opportunity to advertise and market your brand anywhere and anytime you'd like by just showing up! Of course arrangements for events, lunches and dinners must be arranged by property managers, but where there is food lacking and hungry people working food trucks have the advantage of being there.  

 
Here are some pictures from my day at the cookery and what goes into just SOME of this weeks food prep.  

10 pounds of Cheddar Cheese for the Lil Lish Sandwich (A mouthwatering classic grilled cheese)

 

5 pounds of fresh basil ready to be blended for the famous Fordham! (Mozzarella, pesto and a sun dried tomato spread on country white)

 Thyme, Rosemary, Sage and Parsley herbs for the Scarborough Fair! (Imagine those fresh herbs on freshly baked sourdough bread with Gouda cheese! YUM!)